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News Reporting & WritingWeek 4: News Sources & Story StructureKevin Voigt
Sources
Human
Officials, politicians, analysts, eyewitnesses
Physical
Documents you obtain
Digital
Information online or in electronic format
Dealing with human sourcesBe nice, and respectful, to everyone!
Especially secretaries, janitors, the second- and third-in-command
Some people lie, but not everyone
All people have faulty memory
All people speak from self-interest
Finding sources
Government officials, police, politicians
Experts
NGOs, universities, corporations, consultants
PR professionals (for a start)
The guy on the street (vox pop)
Finding them online
Gorkana
Gerson Lehrman Group
Review: Hard News Lede Writing Exercise
Lede writing exercise 1
The wife of a retired Hong Kong civil servant yesterday sought the help of the city’s
Security Bureau in a bid to locate her husband who went missing from the couple’s Dongguan home on December 12.
SUBJECT
VERBOBJECT
Lede writing exercise 1
The wife of a retired Hong Kong civil servant yesterday sought the help of the city’s
Security Bureau in a bid to locate her husband who went missing from the couple’s Dongguan home on December 12.
WHO
WHATWHY
WHEN
WHENWHERE
Lede writing exercise 2
Mainland authorities arrested a 45-year-old farmer yesterday for allegedly hurling hand grenades at relatives
and police in Guangxi Province.
BASIC FACTS
A manhunt involving 5,000 personnel came to an end in Guangxi Province yesterday when a 45-year-old farmer, accused of hurling explosives at his relatives and police,
was arrested with a grenade in his hand.
FACTS PLUS COLOR
Lede writing exercise 2
A 45-year-old farmer raised concerns over the availability of firearms and explosives across
mainland China after he allegedly threw live hand grenades at family and police near Fangcheng city
on Monday. ((EDS: two days ago))
Lede writing exercise 3
An underground gas-pipe explosion sent 15 manhole covers flying above a busy intersection in
Pokfulam yesterday, but in what a bus driver called a miracle, only two people were hurt.
Story Structure
Four Steps to a Story
Conceive.
Report.
Write.
Rewrite.
The Five Steps of Reporting
Identify the information you want.
Figure out who has it.
Go get it.
Take it down accurately.
Analyze it.
Eight Steps to Story ConstructionIdentify the focus or main idea from notes.
Locate the material that supports the main idea
Prioritize the secondary material
Link the sections
SOURCE: MELVIN MENCHER’S NEWS REPORTING & WRITING, 7TH EDITION
Eight Steps to Story ConstructionRead the completed story for substance
Read the story for accuracy & brevity
Read the story for grammar & style
Rewrite to fix problems
Story Structure: 4 StepsLede
Expand the lede
Two to five paragraphs that explain, support and amplify the lede
Background
One or more paragraphs that tell the reader the significance of the story: why they should care, or what has happened before
More elaboration & amplification of news
The Inverted Pyramid
LEDE
ELABORATION
SUPPORT
BACK-GROUND
